There is a high prevalence of inadequate vitamin D levels in the United States. Despite enthusiasm for the use of vitamin D for bone health, there are limited data on the effects of high-dose vitamin D supplements vs. placebo on bone health and body composition outcomes. Previous data support a positive relationship between 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH) D] levels and bone mineral density (BMD). However, results from clinical trials that test vitamin D supplementation alone on areal BMD (aBMD) are sparse and inconsistent, and it is not known whether vitamin D can prevent or reverse the structural deterioration characteristic of osteoporosis. Recent advances in bone imaging make it possible to assess volumetric BMD (vBMD), structure, and micro- architecture non-invasively with high-resolution peripheral computed tomography (HR-pQCT). In addition, observational studies show an inverse relationship between 25(OH) D levels and body mass index (BMI). Since vitamin D is stored in fat, new dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) measures of adiposity can advance understanding of this relationship and determine whether or not supplemental vitamin D has effects on body composition. We propose an ancillary study to the NIH-sponsored, Vitamin D and OmegA-3 Trial (VITAL) (U01 CA138962), an ongoing, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol, 2000 IU/d) and/or marine omega-3 fatty acids (1 gm/d) in 20,000 men and women, to test the effects of vitamin D3 on BMD, geometry, architecture, and body composition. In a sub-cohort of 600 participants recruited from the NIH-sponsored Clinical and Translational Science Center (CTSC) in Boston, we seek to test the following hypotheses, with measures at baseline and year 2: Aim 1: High-dose vitamin D3 will (a) produce small increases in aBMD at the spine, hip, forearm and total body, as assessed by DXA and (b) improve balance of bone remodeling through decreases in bone turnover; Aim 2: High-dose vitamin D3 will improve: vBMD and bone structure and architecture at the distal radius and tibia, as assessed by HR-pQCT and bone strength estimates; Aim 3: High-dose vitamin D3 will result in lower (a) total body fat and fat mass index (FMI-fat mass/height2) and/or b) regional fat measures, as assessed by DXA. For each Aim, we will determine whether effects vary with (a) baseline 25(OH) D levels, (b) gender, (c) race/skin pigmentation, and (d) BMI or FMI. We will also define how the 25(OH) D levels corresponding to high-dose vitamin D supplementation affects these bone health and body composition outcomes. In order to complete pre-randomization testing in this sub-cohort, it is critical that this ancillary study be undertaken during the CTSC baseline visits, which begin December, 2011 and extend to early 2013. The proposed studies will provide positive or informative negative results about effects of vitamin D3 alone on bone health and body composition, and enhance understanding of the skeletal mechanisms through which vitamin D may affect fracture outcomes evaluated in a separate study (AR060574). Findings from this proposal will fill gaps in knowledge and inform clinical and public health recommendations. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The purported health benefits of vitamin D are receiving wide attention in the medical literature and the popular press. While some data support a benefit of vitamin D on fracture reduction, there is no information on the effects of high-dose vitamin D on bone structure and architecture and the effects of adiposity on these relationships. Findings from these clinical studies including advanced imaging techniques will elucidate the role of vitamin D on bone mass, architecture and body composition in men and women enrolled in the VITAL study.